Mistakes are commonplace in cinema, but when mistakes happen in real life — on the biggest night in cinema, no less — it goes down in history as one of the biggest blunders ever. Of course, we’re talking about the Oscars, which has seemingly become a controversial night, especially when the biggest mistakes — including jaw-dropping slaps across the face — take place in the blink of an eye.

That being said, one major mistake took place at the 89th Academy Awards, when screen legends Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway announced the Best Picture winner in one of the most bizarre and unfathomable moments in Oscars history. And while Beatty and Dunaway are considered living legends, the problem was certainly not the fact that the duo were presenting. Instead, the only problem was that they were given the wrong card.

So with the 2025 Oscars swiftly approaching, let’s travel back in time and keep our fingers crossed that history doesn’t repeat itself this year.

The incident at the 2017 Oscars, explained

As Beatty attempted to announce the winner for Best Picture, the world-renowned actor looked confused, then turned to his Bonnie and Clyde co-star Dunaway for assistance. Without skipping a beat, she read off La La Land. It was really no surprise. The musical comedy, starring Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, was nominated for a whopping 14 Oscars and had already won six during the night, so they were heavily favored to win.

But their joy was short-lived — by two minutes and 30 seconds — as the cast and crew gathered on stage to make their speeches, the kerfuffle on stage made it obvious something was amiss. That’s when La La Land producer Fred Berger concluded his speech with, “We lost, by the way.” As Beatty started to clarify what happened, producer Jordan Horowitz interjected:

“Guys, I’m sorry, no. There’s a mistake. Moonlight, you guys won Best Picture. This is not a joke.”

While the audience was stunned, the cast and crew of Moonlight were in disbelief. But the big question is — who dropped the ball? Beatty clarified that he was originally confused because the card he was given said, “Emma Stone, La La Land.” It seems Stone’s Best Actress card was given to Beatty and Dunaway instead of the card for Best Picture

The La La Land cast and crew graciously presented the award to Moonlight, with Horowitz saying he would be proud to hand the award to his friends from Moonlight. As Beatty made his clarification, in case anyone was pointing the blame at him, Horowitz could be seen hugging the director and producers of Moonlight, before presenting the award to producer Jeremy Kleiner.

PricewaterhouseCoopers, the ing firm that counts the votes and determines the winners beforehand, took the blame for the error. ant Brian Cullinan accidentally handed the Best Actress envelope to Beatty and Dunaway by mistake. There are two copies of each envelope just in case something goes wrong, which is how there was another Best Actress card at play. PricewaterhouseCoopers have since established additional protocols to ensure an error like that doesn’t happen again.

Flash forward to now, and both Stone and Gosling have gone on to spearhead a variety of respective projects, with Barbie nabbing Gosling an Academy Award nomination for Best ing Actor last year as Stone now gears up for Bugonia. So while the mishap was undoubtedly embarrassing for all involved, it’s refreshing to know that the cast of La La Land took it on the chin and never harbored any sour grapes.

It’s officially Pride Month, which not only means a boatload of corporations will be brandishing rainbow flags, but that also a suite of important and impactful movies will our watchlist.

Film has long been an essential medium for the portrayal of LGBTQIA+ stories, highlighting everything from the tragedies to the hilarious messiness that comes with being queer. We’ve come a long way in of this representation (heck, Neil Patrick Harris played the straightest character TV had ever seen on How I Met Your Mother), which is reason enough to celebrate.

In honor of Pride Month, we’re sorting through the best LGBTQIA+ movies to watch alongside your chosen family. Dig in, divas!

10. Fire Island (2022)

While it didn’t have much to say in of groundbreaking queer messages, Fire Island is worthy of a place on this list for sheer hilarity alone. The Joel Kim Booster-starring comedy follows a group of queer friends as they embark on a trip to the gay mecca that is Fire Island music festival. Naturally, a whole heap of debauchery queer in-jokes ensue. It’s a nice reminder that not all gay movies must end in death and tragedy.  

9. Bottoms (2023)

Following along the comedy line, 2023’s Bottoms was the sleeper hit that took gay audiences by storm, starring Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri as a pair of high-schoolers who begin a fight club to lose their virginity. The Superbad-adjacent film adds a queer flair to all the loveable tropes of the high-school comedy, and Sennott’s sheer charisma is unmissable. 

8. The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert (1994)

What happens when a bus full of drag queens and a transgender woman take their cabaret show to the remote ends of Australia? You not only get enough dazzling costumes to be the envy of anyone’s closet, but you also get the iconic film The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert. The Australian film was groundbreaking for its early portrayal of drag culture, and news recently broke that there’s a sequel in the works, which is all the more reason to get caught up now.  

7. All of Us Strangers (2023)

Perhaps the saddest entry on this list, All of Us Strangers brings the waterworks with the quiet story of two neighbors whose chance encounter punctures the rhythm of their lives. We can’t go on without giving too much away, but did we mention that it co-stars the internet’s daddy Paul Mescal and hot priest Andrew Scott? 

6. The Favourite (2018)

While his subsequent films have become even more outlandish, Yorgos Lanthimos had a bucketload of fun with The Favourite, the 2018 black comedy starring Emma Stone, Rachel Weisz and Olivia Coleman. The sapphic love triangle that underpins the entire plot is truly sumptuous, and it earned Coleman her first-ever Oscar.   

5. Carol (2015)

Sapphic yearning? Check. Rooney Mara, Sarah Paulson, and Cate Blanchette in one of her best performances? Check. 2015’s Carol showcases a beautiful love story set in 1950s Manhattan, which is about as chic of a setting as you could ask for. Come for the dazzling costumes and set design, and stay for the tender reflection of the consequences that come with queer love. 

4. Call Me By Your Name (2017)

Leave it to Luca Guadagnino — director of the bisexual parable Challengers and the Queer — to deliver one of the most candid and heartbreaking love stories in recent memory. With Call Me By Your Name, the director faithfully adapts the already heart-wrenching story of coming-of-age as a gay teenager, set against the backdrop of 1980s Italy. You’ll never look at a peach the same way.    

3. Moonlight (2016)

An incisive look at the queer Black experience, Moonlight is a groundbreaking feat in storytelling and cinematography. It stars the scene-stealing Mahershala Ali as a young boy coming to with his sexuality on the streets of Miami, and it was more than worthy of its (albeit slightly delayed) Best Picture win in 2017.  

2. Boys Don’t Cry (1999)

The real-life story of transgender man Brandon Teena is handled with utmost comion in the 1999 biopic Boys Don’t Cry. Starring Oscar-winner Hilary Swank, the Kimberly Peirce-directed film opened hearts and minds to trans identities long before it had become a topic of conversation, laying bare the experiences of love, sensuality, and ultimate tragedy.   

1. Brokeback Mountain (2006)

Brokeback Mountain remains the highest-grossing gay romance film of all time, and for good reason. The heart-wrenching tale of a pair of sheep-herders in 1960s Wyoming hasn’t lost an ounce of relevance in the decades since its release, featuring career-best performances by Jake Gyllanhall and the late Heath Ledger. Quotes like “I wish I knew how to quit you” are etched in the collective gay conscience, and there’s simply not enough Kleenex every time we rewatch.  

Some actors have such a dynamic screen presence and natural gravitas that you can’t help but be drawn directly into their world. Mahershala Ali is one such performer.

The Californian’s career has gone off like a rocket in recent years, running the gamut from Oscar-winning film performances to Emmy-nominated turns in celebrated dramas. He’s even set to star in the 2025 reboot of the classic Blade films should Marvel’s intended iteration ever achieve liftoff.

Whether he’s sparkling on television or wowing audiences on the big screen, seeing Ali’s name on a cast list ensures that you’ll get at least one standout performance. That said, some jewels shine brighter than others, so if you’re looking to experience the living master class that is Mahershala Ali, here’s where we think you should begin your journey.

Moonlight

Ali’s performance in this astounding coming-of-age film bagged him his first Oscar for Best ing Actor. Moonlight is a slow-moving but utterly engaging film that chronicles the life of Chiron, a young, queer, Black boy (and later man) who comes to with his sexuality and how it fits in his image of himself as a Black man. Ali plays Juan, a drug dealer who ends up becoming somewhat of a father figure to Chiron in the moving first act of the film. Despite the character’s rough edges, Ali ensures that Juan’s humanity shines through, and you can feel the pain that he goes through as Chiron begins to reject him. Who would have thought that a crack dealer with a heart of gold would leave you in tears?

Free State of Jones

Historical dramas that focus on the American Civil War can be hit or miss, but this incredible story about what happened in Jones County, Mississippi during and after the conflict needles through the tough topics without ignoring them, leading to an enthralling watch. Matthew McConaughey stars as Newton Knight, a former confederate medic who switched sides to the one that didn’t want to enslave people, and Ali is excellent as Moses Washington, a freed man who leads of a group of former slaves that help other Black people find their way to freedom in the Deep South.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

There’s been plenty of talk about superhero fatigue plaguing recent Marvel and DC releases, but Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (and the follow up, Across the Spider-Verse) have shown that there’s still an appetite for heroes, but only if the film is actually interesting and well-made (sorry, MCU fans). The first Miles Morales outing is a high-octane, beautifully-made flick that’s as aesthetically pleasing as it is addictive to watch, and Ali’s great voice acting is vitally important to its success. He plays Miles’ uncle Aaron Davis (also Prowler), a grafitti artist who shares his love of the art with a young Miles.

Roxanne Roxanne

This musical biopic about one of the first female rappers might not stick entirely to the truth, but it certainly makes for a great watch. Roxanne Roxanne follows the incredible life of Roxanne Shante, who as a teen rose to prominence in the New York rap world and became a central figure in one of the first diss track wars in hip hop history. Chanté Adams is phenomenal in the title role, but she’s aided by a great Ali performance as James Cross, a drug dealer who became romantically entangled with the young Shante before becoming abusive.

Green Book

The horrors of segregation and the barbaric nature of the Jim Crow era remain within living memory, but films like Green Book are vital to keep this history vivid and present so it doesn’t get repeated. Ali co-stars alongside Aragorn ⏤ sorry, Viggo Mortensen ⏤ as Don Shirley and Tony Lip respectively, and both do a fine job in building tension where the script is sometimes lacking despite the rich subject matter. Shirley was a famous Black pianist and Lip was his driver and bodyguard, ensuring that he could perform in the South without fear of retribution from racist whites. The title of the film refers to The Negro Motorist Green Book, a guide to non-racist establishments in the South that Black road-trippers and motorists used to secure their safety when heading through America’s racist heartlands. Ali won his second Oscar for Best ing Actor for his masterful portrayal of Shirley.

Ramy

This wonderfully funny series about an Egyptian-American is as insightful as it is delightful, but it carries the heft needed to tackle some of the less humorous topics that come up. Ramy Youssef stars as the eponymous character and brings a great charm to the role. Ali appears in season 2 as Sheikh Ali Malik, a calm, collected figure of authority who is the perfect comic foil to Ramy’s endearing immaturity, and he plays the part sumptuously.

Hidden Figures

Ali doesn’t have the biggest role in this biopic about three Black female mathematicians who made history, but he sparkles when he is on screen. Hidden Figures chronicles the tale of this trio of extraordinary women who played a large role in the success of the American space program: Katherine Goble Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer), and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe). Ali plays Jim Johnson, a soldier who doubts Katherine’s math abilities, before falling for and eventually marrying her. This is a heartwarming watch that also imparts some vital history lessons on the viewer.

Swan Song

Ali shows that he can do sci-fi, too, in this emotionally fraught thinker of a film from Apple TV. He takes on a heavy role as a terminally ill man who is told he can be cloned, thus saving his family from the heartache of losing him. Although the movie itself does sometimes veer into overt melancholy, Ali keeps things going with his powerhouse of a performance. With a lesser actor, this wouldn’t be worth watching, but with him front and center, the runtime simply flies.

True Detective

Ali played the lead in season 3 of this acclaimed crime series and is magnetic as state police detective Wayne Hays. The eight episodes jump between different times over a three-decade period, but Ali’s consistency and brilliance remain throughout. This particular season of the anthology follows Hays as he tries to crack the case of two missing kids. It’s a pulsating watch, driven by another mesmerizing Ali performance.

House of Cards

Ali had a major role in the first four seasons of this iconic American remake of the British political drama, which many credit with being the series that truly announced the arrival of tech companies as content makers. He plays Remy Danton, a lobbyist and lawyer who eventually becomes the president’s Chief of Staff. As always, he’s absolutely brilliant in every scene he’s in, and while we don’t condone the dubious past behavior of leading man Kevin Spacey, we think this is still worth watching if you’re an Ali fan.

While many musicians cross over into film at some point in their careers, it’s a rare few who are actually good, and even rarer to find performers who are masters of both mediums. Janelle Monáe is one of those almost mythical performers who excel at just about any art they put their mind to; watching her stunning performance in Glass Onion is almost as delightful as listening to “Make Me Feel” — when she combines music with cinema (like the Dirty Computer short film), it’s basically magical.

Given Monáe came on the scene with an obvious flare for the theatrical — the artist’s debut full-length, 2010’s The ArchAndroid, was a concept album where Monáe cast herself as an android named Cindy Mayweather — it was only a matter of time until she immersed herself in the film industry. After first voicing a veterinarian in the animated film Rio 2, Monáe has gone on to be choosy when picking projects, a habit that’s served her well. As she continues to release outstanding work in every field she chooses (her most recent musical output, The Age of Pleasure, is streaming as of June 9), let’s celebrate by ranking some of the best movie roles she’s had so far.

7. Lady and the Tramp (2019)

Like most Disney live-action remakes, this perfectly adequate retelling of a classic animated film doesn’t bring anything fresh to the table, but it does give us the opportunity to hear Monáe sing “He’s a Tramp,” and she does so beautifully. In a movie where the audience basically knows what to expect, Monáe’s performance as the street dog Peg somehow feels novel (as does the change in setting to New Orleans and the thankfully omitted singing Siamese cats). Even though nobody would have blamed her if she aimed only for just all right, Monáe manages to make what could have been a mediocre performance into a good one.

6. The Glorias (2020)

The Glorias is a biopic of famed feminist activist Gloria Steinem, based on her memoir Life on the Road. The film takes an interesting approach, placing four different versions of Steinem on a bus together while they recount their lives. It’s endearing to hear the Glorias’ conversations with each other and a way to keep the film from becoming too predictable as it covers her life from undercover journalism to becoming a leader of the feminist movement in the 1970s and ’80s.

Anyone familiar with that movement will know Steinem wasn’t alone; friends like Florynce Kennedy and Dorothy Pitman Hughes appear in the film, played by Lorraine Toussaint and Monáe, respectively. Quite honestly, either woman deserves her own biographical film and Monáe’s scenes are far too few for how good of a performance she gives.

5. Harriet (2019)

Despite being arguably the most well-known abolitionist in history, Harriet Tubman’s life had never been depicted in film until 2019 when Harriet was released. Directed by Kasi Lemmons, the biographical film tells the incredible story of Harriet Tubman’s life as she escapes from slavery and becomes a major part of the Underground Railroad. Harriet’s tale is one of bravery and hope, and it’s astounding she had yet to be the subject of a film, especially when Hollywood loves making biopics about (let’s be real, mostly white) men.

Monáe plays the daughter of a freed slave and owner of the Philadelphia boarding house Harriet moves into as a free woman. As has become her M.O., Monáe steals the spotlight in any scene she appears, and while the film is far from a perfect retelling of Harriet’s extraordinary life, performances from a stunning cast help elevate the slightly formulaic script.

4. Dirty Computer [Emotion Picture] (2018)

Though many would overlook Dirty Computer — considering it more an extended music video to accompany Monáe’s 2018 album of the same name than a fully-fledged short film — they would be missing out on an outstanding cinematic experience. The 49-minute short film (which is available for free on YouTube, although it is age-restricted) is an ambitious science fiction masterpiece that tells the story of the android Jane 57281, who lives in a dystopian society where a totalitarian government stomps out any free-thinking. Despite the homophobic world they live in, Jane manages to fight this forced programming and celebrates Queer, polyamorous love in the process; starring Tessa Thompson as another android and love interest, the cast rivals that of many a feature film. Dirty Computer is a beautiful visual counterpart to an equally amazing album, and its themes of freedom, personhood, and love are still just as relevant as the day it was released.

3. Hidden Figures (2016)

2016 was a good year for Monáe’s career; the year she made her feature film debut, she starred in not one, but two critically-acclaimed films. In Hidden Figures, Monáe plays one of three human “computers,” an underappreciated role where a person, usually a woman, would perform lengthy math calculations for hours at a time, who would lead NASA’s efforts to get a man on the moon. The youngest and most opinionated of the three, Monáe gives a firecracker performance as the ambitious Mary Jackson, who is beyond frustrated with the hurdles she faces by being a Black woman in 1960s America.

A standout scene in the film is when Jackson successfully convinces a judge to allow her to attend night classes at an all-white high school. In order to land an engineer position at NASA, Jackson must take additional coursework (in addition to her existing mathematics and physical science degree) and Monáe delivers a moving monologue, emphasizing the historical impact of the decision.

2. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)

When I first heard Knives Out, Rian Johnson’s masterful 2019 whodunit film, was going to have a sequel, I was curious what that would look like. The first film wrapped up the mystery so beautifully that it would have seemed forced to revisit that story; thankfully, Johnson was of the same mind, and Glass Onion involves detective Benoit Blanc solving a whole new mystery. Billionaire Miles Bron invites his five friends to his private island to take part in an elaborate murder mystery game, only for an actual murder to take place. Hopefully you’ve seen this film by now, but if not, it’s best to go in blind if possible.

Monáe stars as Andi Brand, Bron’s former friend and business partner, who shocks the billionaire when she shows up to the island unannounced. Like any good mystery, Glass Onion gives you enough clues to feasibly piece together the culprit yourself but will no doubt keep you on your toes. Without giving too much away, Monáe gives an impressively varied performance and her scenes with Craig are a delight.

1. Moonlight (2016)

There isn’t much I can say about Moonlight that hasn’t already been said by writers more eloquent than me, but I’ll do my best. The Best Picture winner at the 2017 Academy Awards (which went off without a hitch), Moonlight tells a breathtakingly beautiful story of a young Black man in three parts, as he grapples with his sexuality, masculinity, and identity in a world that only wants him if he fits neatly in the box prescribed to him. The film, written by Tarell Alvin McCraney and directed by Barry Jenkins, is part coming-of-age, part family drama, and Queer love story, and — just like the human being at the center of the story — is as multi-faceted as it is beautiful.

It’s rare for an actor’s first film to be their best, but as we’ve already established, Monáe is rare. In her feature film debut, she plays Teresa, who plays a paternal role in the protagonist Chiron’s life. The girlfriend of local drug dealer Juan (Mahershala Ali), the young couple end up offering a safe haven to the young Chiron during his rough and unpredictable adolescence, and filling in for his absent mother, a woman addicted to the drugs Juan sells. While Monáe might not be in many scenes, she expertly portrays a nurturing and comforting adult through every line of dialogue and every minute expression, already proving to be a pro in her first live-action role.

As the biggest night in film, the Oscars now have a long history of legendary off-script occurrences, for better or for worse. It might be hard to top the unexpected outburst by Will Smith against Chris Rock, following the comedian’s tasteless joke about Smith’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith, but the snapshots below could come close.

Other horrible Oscars moments like Seth MacFarlane’s opening musical number “We Saw Your Boobs,” John Travolta’s complete butchering of Idina Menzel’s name, or the Snow White x Rob Lowe opener that got the Academy sued by Disney in 1989, weren’t shocking enough to make the cut, but still deserve honorable mentions.

Angelina Jolie and her brother

“I’m so in love with my brother right now,” is what Angelina Jolie decided to go with for her very first Oscar win for her performance in Girl, Interrupted. A harmless comment had the siblings not gone on to kiss on the mouth at the Vanity Fair Oscars after-party.

Of course, baseless rumors started flowing about the proximity between Jolie and her brother James Haven, which both of them quickly shut down. Maybe not enough to top Will Smith slapping Chris Rock on stage, but it would surely still get people talking if it happened today.

Adrien Brody kisses Halle Berry

This little nugget was hailed as one of the most iconic Oscar moments for years after it happened but we all know Adrien Brody kissing Halle Berry without consent on stage for all to see would never, ever, fly today. A year later, while receiving her Best Actress award, Charlize Theron kept the tradition going by kissing Brody, her presenter, on the mouth.

In 2017, Berry addressed the situation, saying that, at that moment, all she could think of was “what the f*ck is happening?.” Although her audience at Watch What Happens: Live laughed it off, Berry didn’t seem too fond of the memory.

Roman Polanski wins best director

The Academy seems to pride itself on being a respectful event, but Smith squaring up with Rock is far from being the most disrespectful or classless moment in the Awards’ history. It doesn’t get more disgusting than a room full of stars giving a confessed child molester a standing ovation, but that’s exactly what happened when Roman Polanski won the statuette for Best Director for his film The Pianist.

At the time, and to this day, Polanski was a fugitive from the law, evading sentencing for rape and five other felonies committed in 1977. After all the strides Hollywood has made to stop predatory men from plaguing the industry in recent years, this win might seem insane, but it did happen. The Academy finally expelled Polanski in 2018, over four decades since he fled the country.

The Streaker

Ah, the ’70s. A time of great cinema, and greater nakedness. And what is more ’70s than a man running across the Oscars stage in nothing but his birthday suit, throwing up peace signs? This brilliant example of Flower Power took place during the 1974 Academy Awards, while host David Niven was trying to introduce Elizabeth Taylor.

Now famously known as “The Streaker,” the man was later identified as Robert Opel, a photographer, art gallery owner, and activist based out of San Francisco. The way Opel managed to break through security so easily, and the quick wit of host Niven’s reaction and commentary on the scene led many to believe the whole thing was staged. At the time, streaking was a trend, in the same vein as planking, the Harlem Shake, or today’s TikTok dances. Very rowdy for the Academy.

The Moonlight/La La Land blunder

The only major modern Oscars scandal that could possibly measure up to the Smith/Rock fiasco of 2022 was the 2017 Best Picture mix-up between the year’s two darlings: La La Land, and Moonlight. Bonnie and Clyde legends Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway were given the wrong envelope — the one for Best Actress, with Emma Stone and La La Land written on it in big letters — consequently leading Beatty to do a double-take before handing Dunaway the card.

The actress read out “La La Land,” and only after the entire cast and crew in attendance had made their way to the stage did producer Jordan Horowitz correct the mistake. The whole room of stars had their jaws on the floor, and Taraji P. Henson didn’t hesitate to whip out her phone. Everyone was ultimately very gracious about it all, but the Oscars hadn’t been that entertaining in a minute.

Sacheen Littlefeather and Marlon Brando

Almost everyone knows about the time Marlon Brando declined his Best Actor Oscar for his now iconic performance in The Godfather, sending alleged Native American activist and President of the National Native American Affirmative Image Committee, Sacheen Littlefeather in his place.

Littlefeather refused the statuette from Roger Moore and delivered a speech bringing awareness to the treatment and depiction of Native American people in Hollywood cinema, and to the events of the Wounded Knee occupation which was taking place at the time. She was met with heckling and booing, with John Wayne reportedly having to be restrained from attacking the activist. Regardless of the doubts that have since surfaced about Littlefeather’s ancestry, her bravery at that moment, and the validity of the cause both she and Brando stood up for, can’t be questioned.

Michael Moore speaks out against the invasion of Iraq

Political speeches are now the norm at the Oscars, from critiques of the on-screen representation of minorities with #OscarsSoWhite, to global warming, and the #MeToo movement, but that wasn’t always the case. Much like Littlefeather 30 full decades before him, famous documentarian Michael Moore was met with instant backlash from loud of the audience who rejected his condemnation of former U.S. president George W. Bush’s election and invasion of Iraq.

Moore was not intimidated however, going on to state that the Iraq war was based on “fictitious reasons,” and that “anytime you’ve got the Pope and The Dixie Chicks against you, your time is up.” The camera then panned to different of the audience, raging from an uncomfortable Adrien Brody to an apparently smiley Harrison Ford. The 2003 Oscars might just be the most eventful in history, garnering three entries on this list.

Mike Tyson is undoubtedly one of the most recognizable celebrities on the planet. He first gained notoriety by displaying his powerful boxing prowess time after time, with knockout after knockout during his storied 20-year career. He is considered by not just strictly boxing fans but general sports fans to be one of the greatest heavyweight fighters of all time. He wasn’t called “The Baddest Man on the Planet” for nothing as he won 50 of 58 fights in his career, with 44 of those bouts ending by way of knockout.

With all that success came lots of fame, money, cameo appearances on television shows and in movies, endorsement deals, his own animated comedy series, and some awful moments that included prison time, drug abuse, and bankruptcy. Through all of that, Tyson’s face, tattoo, and certainly his voice all together make him one of the most popular people of the modern era.

He’s also been the subject of countless jokes and comedic impressions by so many folks over all of these years of his popularity. But a few actors out there have taken the portrayal of such a famous figure much more seriously, for the sake of telling his life story to audiences far and wide.

A new project is on the horizon that will detail Tyson’s life

Mike Tyson’s life story will be told in the near future by way of a miniseries project that will be released exclusively on Hulu. Simply titled Mike, the series will center around Tyson during his rise to fame in the late 1980s and through some of his most tumultuous times of the nineties that included a highly publicized marriage to Robin Givens, followed by time behind bars that took place in the middle of his boxing prime.

Cast to portray the former champ is accomplished actor Trevante Rhodes. He’s best known for his role in the Academy Award-winning drama Moonlight, as well as appearing opposite Sandra Bullock in Birdbox. He also had ing roles in The United States vs. Billie Holiday and The Predator.

According to Entertainment Weekly, Hulu has set a release date for August 25, featuring eight episodes in all.

A separate Mike Tyson biopic series will star a Hollywood A-lister as the former champ

Critically acclaimed director Antoine Fuqua is set to direct what certainly hopes to be a biopic series that will be ed for generations. And Martin Scorsese is also said to be involved with the project as an executive producer. Those two names alone should hold the attention of even the most casual viewer.

But to make things even more promising, Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx will play Tyson in the series that’s titled Finding Mike. For the past couple of years, the 54-year-old Foxx has been keeping in serious shape to accurately play the part of “Iron Mike.” This definitely shows some promise, especially since Foxx won an Oscar and a Golden Globe in 2005 for giving a spot-on performance as Ray Charles in the legendary music man’s biopic. This is sure to be a more serious take on how Foxx would act as Tyson, much more serious in fact than the comical impressions he once did earlier in his career.

There’s no official word yet on the streaming service that will distribute the series, nor is there a firm date of completion set either.

A somewhat ‘long-lost’ Tyson biopic brought attention to a once unknown actor

Not many people will this one, but all the way back in 1995, a made-for-TV movie simply titled Tyson was broadcast on HBO. It was based on the 1989 book Fire and Fear: The Inside Story of Iron Mike Tyson by José Torres. The movie chronicled his life from his rough childhood pretty much up to the mid-1990s, when he was making his comeback to the ring after his release from prison.

The movie starred a few well-known actors at that time such as George C. Scott, Paul Winfield, and Malcolm Jamal Warner. But it also featured a relatively unknown name at that time in the titular role. It was Michael Jai White who was cast as Tyson, in the first feature-length film role of his still ongoing career. Up to that point, White had only appeared in small roles or as a background extra on several television shows like Saved by the Bell, Martin, and Living Single, to name a few.

Throughout much of his life, White trained in martial arts and boxing so his performance as Tyson was rather easy considering he didn’t have to do a lot to get into physical shape. He even did a remarkable job in getting Tyson’s signature lisp and tone of voice down.

Since then, White has gone on to star in numerous lead and roles in movies like Spawn, Universal Soldier: The Return, The Dark Knight, and Black Dynamite – both the live-action film and the animated series on Adult Swim.

Hulu has just released a teaser trailer for the biographical series Mike about the life and career of boxing legend Mike Tyson.

The series, starring Trevante Rhodes, comes from I, Tonya writer Steven Rogers and will tell Tyson’s story with flashbacks to his youth and the road he took to become of the greatest boxers of all time. According to showrunner Karin Gist, the series will not shy away from his most heinous moments which include his rape conviction in 1992 and biting Evander Holyfield’s ear off.

The show is not meant to glorify his life. We were never trying to say that Mike Tyson is a hero or Mike Tyson is a villain. Our goal was to take a very complicated and controversial figure and try to get under the hood of what he was praised and vilified for while staying true to our North Star of ‘no one person is one thing.’

Gist wants the viewer to have a full picture of Tyson’s life without casting judgment. She believes that confronting the horrific moments of Tyson’s past can possibly help take the conversation to the next level.

Fortunately, as a global society, we are all talking more and more about things that were once taboo or only whispered about among friends — rape, sexual assault, consent to name a few. Putting stories like this in the spotlight and pulling them out of the shadows is crucial to moving forward and getting the conversation to the next level. The goal was not to shy away from the scary or uncomfortable parts of the story just because they are scary and uncomfortable.

For Rogers, he wanted to achieve the same goal as I, Tonya.

I think the thing people responded to in I, Tonya was, we took a story everyone thought they knew and we tried to show there’s much more to it than just the sound bites the media gives us. Then one of us said, ‘What about doing that with Mike Tyson?’ I clicked to that because to me, his story is so compelling, contradictory, and complex. In some ways, it’s a cautionary tale of the American Dream. It also seemed like quite a ride. And you can find the roots of a lot of issues we’re grappling with today like #MeToo, Black Lives Matter, prison reform, mental health issues in it. It seemed like a good time to tell it.

Both Gist and Rogers want the audience to decide for themselves how to feel about Tyson’s legacy.

The limited series will have eight episodes and also star Russell Hornsby, Harvey Keitel, Laura Harrier, and Li Eubanks. Mike is slated to debut on August 25th on Hulu. You can check out the full teaser above.

Well, that’s embarrassing. Earlier tonight at The 89th Annual Academy Awards, La La Land was accidentally announced as Best Picture before producer Jordan Horowitz revealed that there had been a mistake. The award wasn’t meant for Damien Chazelle’s film. Rather, it was supposed to go to Moonlight. At first, it seemed like it may be a joke, but as it turns out, the wrong name was read. It’s a bit hard to believe that such a thing could happen, but you can see for yourself in the video up above. What exactly caused such a blunder to be made is unclear, but it seems as if the envelope that was opened by Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway was the one for Emma Stone for Best Actress, instead of the Best Picture one, which caused the confusion. At least, that’s what Deadline thinks. It’s an honest mistake, but still a pretty big thing to screw up and as expected, it’s caused a bit of a stir within Hollywood.

“I was holding my Best Actress envelope the whole time,” Stone said, according to Mashable. “I don’t know what story was told but … wanted to tell you guys first.”

While it may have been amusing for viewers at home, it made for a very awkward finish to the night and created a lot of chaos on stage, as no one was really sure what was going on. Not to mention that, quite frankly, Moonlight winning Best Picture shocked just about everybody, as La La Land had been the clear favorite for a while now, especially after picking up several other awards earlier tonight. Regardless, a mistake was made and while no one’s perfect, both Beatty and Dunaway are going to have to face a bit of heat now, as you can be sure that they won’t live this one down for a while.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has just finished announcing the winners of The 89th Annual Academy Awards, with a rather enormous shakeup occurring right at the end of the ceremony. Apparently, Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway were given the wrong card to read for Best Picture, so after announcing that La La Land had taken the big prize (and the crew having started their acceptance speech), they had to be stopped so that the mistake could be corrected. And so, after all the fuss, we’ve ended up with Moonlight (perhaps the most overrated film of 2016) taking the top prize, along with Best Adapted Screenplay (Barry Jenkins) and Best ing Actor (Mahershala Ali). La La Land still won the most awards by far though with six, including Best Director (Damien Chazelle), Best Actress (Emma Stone), and Best Cinematography. This major shakeup represents the biggest upset in over 20 years, for the last film to win Best Picture with only a WGA win from the major guilds was Braveheart all the way back in 1996. It also marks the second time in a row that the Producers Guild of America has failed to match with The Academy (last year’s winner, The Big Short, obviously didn’t win Best Picture either). Speaking of upsets, there were plenty of others in the smaller categories, which saw Hacksaw Ridge unexpectedly winning Best Film Editing and Best Sound Mixing (it was expected to win Best Sound Editing, but not Mixing). We can also now officially say that Suicide Squad is an Academy Award-winning film. What was not that big of a surprise, however, was seeing Casey Affleck win Best Actor for his brilliant performance in Manchester by the Sea. While he did lose the SAG award to Denzel Washington, Affleck had won pretty much every other award out their for his performance, with many people still assuming he’d win tonight. Surprisingly, this brings an end to SAG’s 12-year streak of correctly predicting this award, but nonetheless, it was still wonderful to see him win. This really has been a rather disappointing and surprising turn of events, but just like last year, the more-deserving nominees will be the ones that are ed (La La Land, Manchester by the Sea, Hacksaw Ridge, etc.), while the second overrated Best Picture in a row will be forgotten rather quickly. I’d say we should look forward to next year, but if this is the new norm, then there doesn’t seem to be much of a reason to get one’s hopes up. Still, at least we can focus on all the great winners that took home Oscar gold this year: Viola Davis FINALLY won an Oscar for her brilliant performance in Fences, Kenneth Lonergan won Best Original Screenplay for his outstanding script to Manchester by the Sea, and La La Land‘s unforgettable music was honored with both Best Original Score and Best Original Song (in addition to Damien Chazelle winning Best Director for his incredible work). While the shakeup is destined to be all that people talk about for the next few days, at least there will be a few good memories. One thing’s for sure, I think it’s pretty safe to say that no one got a perfect ballot this year… Best Picture: Moonlight Best Director: Damien Chazelle, La La Land Best Actor: Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea Best Actress: Emma Stone, La La Land Best ing Actor: Mahershala Ali, Moonlight Best ing Actress: Viola Davis, Fences Best Original Screenplay: Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea Best Adapted Screenplay: Barry Jenkins, Moonlight Best Film Editing: Hacksaw Ridge Best Cinematography: La La Land Best Production Design: La La Land Best Costume Design: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Suicide Squad Best Original Score: La La Land Best Original Song: “City of Stars,” La La Land Best Sound Editing: Arrival Best Sound Mixing: Hacksaw Ridge Best Visual Effects: The Jungle Book Best Animated Feature: Zootopia Best Documentary Feature: O.J.: Made in America Best Foreign Language Film: The Salesman Best Live Action Short: Sing Best Animated Short: Piper Best Documentary Short: The White Helmets Predictions: 14/24

We’ve finally come to the big moment where I lay down my best predictions as to who will be taking home Oscars in all 24 categories. This year is a little different from last, in that it’s pretty much been a one-track award season for a certain little musical (as opposed to last year, where things were a little uncertain heading into the big night), but, as always, there’s plenty of room for surprises to happen, so let’s dive right in. Best Live Action Short Ennemis Intérieurs La Femme et le TGV Silent Nights Sing Timecode Best Documentary Short Extremis 4.1 Miles Joe’s Violin Watani: My Homeland The White Helmets Best Animated Short Blind Vaysha Borrowed Time Pear Cider and Cigarettes Pearl Piper As usual, there’s nothing to really base a good prediction on for the short categories, aside from the buzz surrounding the nominees. This year, the buzz is around Ennemis Intérieurs, Joe’s Violin, and Piper. Last year’s buzz went 0 for 3, while the previous year went 3 for 3, so we’ll just have to wait and see how things go this Sunday. Best Sound Mixing Arrival Hacksaw Ridge La La Land Rogue One: A Star Wars Story 13 Hours This will probably be a pretty easy win for La La Land, especially given that it’s a musical with the singing done live on the set (just like Les Miserables, a film that won this same award four years ago). The only competition here would appear to be from Hacksaw Ridge, a big, noisy war movie that just might jump in and take it, but the best bet still lies with La La Land, especially after its big win with the Cinema Audio Society. Best Sound Editing Arrival Deepwater Horizon Hacksaw Ridge La La Land Sully When it comes to Sound Editing, I think this will more than likely go to Hacksaw Ridge precisely for the reason I mentioned earlier. It’s a big, noisy war pic where the sound effects are very noticeable, and are sure to grab the Academy’s attention. There’s also the fact that it won both major film awards from the Motion Picture Sound Editors, putting it in prime position to win here. However, be on the lookout for La La Land to jump in, especially if it’s going to sweep. Most Academy don’t really know the difference between Sound Mixing and Editing anyway, so it could easily happen.

The votes have been counted and The Academy has officially whittled down 2016’s crème de la crème to select the nominees for the 89th Academy Awards. Continuing its impressive victory lap, Damien Chazelle’s La La Land leads the pack with 14 nominations, after receiving the nod for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, Original Screenplay, Cinematography, Costume Design, Film Editing, Original Score, Original Song (for both “City of Stars” and “Audition”), Production Design, Sound Editing and Sound Mixing. It’s a haul that equals the record set by All About Eve (1950) and James Cameron’s Titanic (1997), and following its historic coup at this month’s Golden Globes ceremony, La La Land will be the one to beat on February 26th. Another record worth mentioning now belongs to the great Meryl Streep, who scooped up her 20th nomination for her nuanced performance in Florence Foster Jenkins. Beyond that, Moonlight and Denis Villeneuve’s Arrival trail with eight nominations a piece, though the latter’s lead star, Amy Adams, is a notable absentee from the Best Actress category. Ditto for Martin Scorsese’s Silence, which finds itself in the running for Best Cinematography and little else. In more positive news, thanks to the strong performances of Hidden Figures, Loving and the Denzel Washington-helmed Fences, #OscarsSoWhite won’t be rearing its ugly head for a third consecutive year. Without a single acting nominee of color in either 2015 or 2016, the lack of diversity in The Academy’s selections sparked widespread protests. Hollywood brass then went about implementing a radical shake-up to its pool of voters – in fact, of the 683 new invites issued last summer, 46 percent were women and 41 percent people of color. Without further ado, here’s the complete list of candidates in the running for the 2017 Academy Awards, and though Rogue One, Doctor Strange and even Suicide Squad all made the cut, the Merc With a Mouth was shunned entirely. Looks like Deadpool‘s Oscar campaign really was wishful thinking after all.

Best ing Actor Dev Patel Michael Shannon Jeff Bridges Lucas Hedges Mahershala Ali Best Cinematography  Arrival Lion La La Land Moonlight Silence Best Documentary Fire at Sea I Am Not Your Negro Life Animated OJ: Made in America 13th Best Foreign Language Film Land of Mine A Man Called Ove The Salesman Tana Toni Erdmann

Best Actor Casey Affleck Ryan Gosling Denzel Washington Viggo Mortensen Andrew Garfield Best Production Design Arrival Fantastic Beasts Hail Caesar La La Land engers Best Visual Effects  Deepwater Horizon Doctor Strange Jungle Book Kubo Rogue One Best Costume Design Allied Fantastic Beasts Florence Foster Jenkins Jackie La La Land Best Makeup and Hair A Man Called Ove Star Trek Beyond Suicide Squad

Best Original Score  Jackie La La Land Lion Moonlight engers Best Original Song Audition Can’t Stop the Feeling City of Stars Empty Chair How Far I’ll Go Best Original Screenplay La La Land Hell or High Water The Lobster Manchester 20th Century Women Best Adapted Screenplay Arrival Fences Hidden Figures Lion Moonlight

Best Animated Film Zootopia Kubo Moana My Life as a Zucchini The Red Turtle Best ing Actress  Nicole Kidman Viola Davis Naomie Harris Octavia Spencer Michelle Williams Best Actress Emma Stone Isabelle Huppert Ruth Negga Natalie Portman Meryl Streep Best Director Damien Chazelle Denis Villeneuve Mel Gibson Kenneth Lonergan Barry Jenkins Best Picture La La Land Moonlight Manchester by the Sea Arrival Fences Lion Hacksaw Ridge Hell or High Water Hidden Figures

What do you make of the selection going into this year’s Oscar ceremony? Drop your thoughts below and , the big night has been penciled in for Sunday, February 26 at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre, when Jimmy Kimmel will be our host for the evening.

What a year it’s been for writer-director Denis Villeneuve. Following the one-two punch of Prisoners and Sicario, in 2016 the filmmaker crafted a stunning, cerebral sci-fi in the form of Arrival, and will remain in the genre for not only Blade Runner 2049, but also Legendary’s embryonic Dune reboot. For Villeneuve, it’s Arrival that has fired his name directly into the Oscar race, and while we wait patiently for The Academy to select its nominees (keep your peepers peeled on January 24), the latest round of nominations are in. This time, it’s the Directors Guild of America’s turn to announce their candidates for this year’s ceremony and sure enough, Denis Villeneuve is among the nominees. He’s in the running for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in a Feature Film, a title Damien Chazelle (La La Land), Barry Jenkins (Moonlight), Garth Davis (Lion) and Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea) will also be lobbying for in a few weeks’ time. Meanwhile, Kelly Fremon Craig (The Edge of Seventeen) and Dan Trachtenberg (10 Cloverfield Lane) are just some of the names competing in the First-Time Feature Film bracket. The full list of nominees can be found below, with the winners expected to be announced at the 69th Annual DGA Awards on February 4, 2017.

Outstanding Directorial Achievement in a Feature Film: Damien Chazelle – La La Land Garth Davis – Lion Barry Jenkins – Moonlight Kenneth Lonergan – Manchester by the Sea Denis Villeneuve – Arrival First-Time Feature Film: Garth Davis – Lion Kelly Fremon Craig – The Edge of Seventeen Tim Miller – Deadpool Nate Parker – The Birth of a Nation Dan Trachtenberg – 10 Cloverfield Lane